Despite Boom in Renewables, Risks Could Hurt Further Growth

"Alternative" energy is officially not so alternative anymore. Last year, for the first time ever, spending on projects to generate electricity from renewable sources eclipsed the amount spent to build conventional fossil fuel plants. In 2010, renewable projects drew $187 billion in investment, 19 percent more than the $157 billion spent to build or augment conventional generating plants, fuelled by natural gas, oil and coal, according to analysis released by Bloomberg New Energy Finance for the Durban climate talks. As the clean energy sector comes of age it must now reckon with the challenges of more mature industries. Namely, managing the risk posed by larger, more complex projects. According to "Managing the Risk in Renewable Energy ," a report released this week by the Economist Intelligence Unit and Swiss Re, minimizing financial risk is one of the most "acute" chall...